Closure latch



C- W. FOLEY CLOSURE LATCH July 30, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 28, 1967 ATTORNEY C. W. FOLEY CLOSURE LATCH July 30, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 28, 1967 I N VEEVTOR.

A'ITORNEY ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A vehicle body door lock has a frame and a fixed vertical shaft mounted on the frame. A combined intermittent and outside operating member is pivotally and slidably mounted on the shaft and slidably located by a compression spring. A fork type 'bolt is pivoted on the frame and includes two shoulders. A detent is pivoted on the frame and includes a first horizontal arm engageable with each shoulder to locate the bolt in latched or intermediate positions and engageable with the edge of the bolt when the bolt is spring biased to unlatched position. The detent has a second arm extending horizontally opposite of the first arm and underlying a shoulder of the intermittent member when the intermittent member is in a coupled position. When a vertical rod is pushed downwardly by an outside push button, the member shoulder picks up the second arm of the detent to rotate the detent and move the first arm out of engagement with either shoulder of the bolt to permit the boltspring to move the bolt to unlatched position. A locking lever is pivoted on the frame about an axis transverse of the shaft axis and is located in locked and unlocked positions by an overcenter type torsion spring. The locking lever is moved between its positions by either a garnish button or a key cylinder assembly. The locking lever has a horizontal tab which is received in a vertical slot in the intermittent member. When the locking lever is moved to locked position, the tab engages a side of the slot to rotate the intermittent member about the shaft to an uncoupled position and locate the intermittent member shoulder out of the path of the second arm of the detent lever. The locking lever locates the intermittent member in the uncoupled or coupled position. A transfer lever is pivoted on the frame and has one arm received in a horizontally enlarged opening in the intermittent member and the other arm overlying an arm of aninside remote lever which is pivoted on the frame. The remote lever is connected to the inside remote handle. The detent includes a third depending arm which is spaced from a tab of the intermittent member when the latter is in coupled position and located adjacent the tab when the intermittent member is in uncoupled position. When the bolt is rotated from unlatched position to intermediate or latched position, the first time that the first arm of the detent ratchets past the first bolt shoulder, the third arm of the detent engages the tab of the intermittent member to swing the intermittent member from uncoupled to coupled position and swing the locking lever from locked to unlocked position. If the intermittent member is shifted downwardly before the bolt moves from unlatched to either intermediate or latched positions, the intermittent member tab is moved below the path of the third arm of the detent to maintain the intermittent member in uncoupled position as the bolt moves to either intermediate or latched positions.

SPECIFICATION States Patent 3,394,957 Patented July 30, 1968 One feature of this invention is that it provides operating means for vehicle body door locks which include the features of automatic undogging and keyless locking. Another feature of this invention is that the operating means include a combined intermittent and outside operating member which is pivot-ally and slidably mounted on a fixed shaft and is pivotally located with respect to the shaft in either a coupled or uncoupled position with respect to a detent by a locking lever. A further feature of this invention is that the locking lever may be selective 1y moved from either the inside or the outside of the body between locked and unlocked positions to respectively locate the operating member in uncoupled and coupled positions. Yet another feature of this invention is that the operating member and the detent include respective portions which are engageable with each other as the lock bolt moves from unlatched to latched posi tion to move the operating member from uncoupled to coupled position and in turn move the locking lever from locked to unlocked position. Still another feature of this invention is that the operating member may be slidably moved in its uncoupled position to prevent engagement of the respective portions of the operating member and detent and maintain the operating member in uncoupled position. Yet a further fature of this invention is that the inside operating means include a transfer lever which is coupled to the operating member at all times. Still a further feature of this invention is that the locking lever is coupled to the operating member by a tab on one engageable in an elongated slot on the other to permit sliding movement of the operating member along the shaft without movement of the locking lever and provide for movement of the operating member about the shaft regardless of its axial position.

These and other features of the door lock of this invention will be readily apparent from the following specification and drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a partial side elevational view of a vehicle body embodying a door lock according to this invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged view taken generally along the plane indicated by line 22 of FIGURE 1 and showing the bolt in latched position and the operating member in coupled position;

FIGURE 3 is a view taken generally along the plane indicated by line 33 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a partially broken away view taken generally along the plane indicated by line 44 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 5 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 showing the bolt in unlatched position.

Referring now particularly to FIGURE 1 of the drawings, a vehicle body designated generally includes a front door 12 hinged at its forward edge 14 to the body for swinging movement between open and closed positions. When the door is in closed position, as shown, the rear wall of the door is located in juxtaposed position to the body pillar. A door lock 16 according to this invention is mounted on the rear wall of the door and is engageable with striker means mounted on the body pillar to hold the door in this position.

The lock is best illustrated in FIGURES 2 through 5 and includes a main frame or plate 18 which is attached by screws 20 to the rear or lock pillar wall 22 of the door 12. A bolt 24 is pivotally mounted on a shaft 26 which extends between the main frame 22 and an auxiliary frame or plate 28 of the lock. The auxiliary frame is staked at 30 to a side flange 32 of frame 18 and includes a tab 34 which is staked to a lateral flange 36 of the main frame.

A coil torsion spring 38 surrounds the pin 26 and has one end thereof hooked to the flange 32 and the other end thereof engaging a bolt stud to continually bias the bolt 24 counterclockwise toward unlatched position, as shown in FIGURE 5. When the bolt is in this position, the engagement of the inboard leg 42 of the bolt with flange 32 locates the bolt against the action of the spring 38.

A detent lever 46 is pivotally mounted on a pin 48 which extends between the main frame 18 and the auxiliary frame 28. A coil torsion spring 50 surrounds the pin 48 and has one end thereof engaging a depending flanged arm 52 of the detent and the other end thereof engaging a notched lateral tab 54 of frame 18 to continually bias the detent 46 clockwise of the pin 48. A generally horizontally extending arm 56 of the detent is engageable with either a shoulder 58 or a shoulder 60 of the bolt 24 to respectively locate the bolt in latched position, as shown in FIGURE 2, or in intermediate position, not shown. When the bolt is in unlatched position as shown in FIG- URE 5, the arm 46 rides on the edge of the outboard leg 42 opposite the shoulder 60.

A pin or shaft 62 extends between an upper lateral flange 64 and a lower lateral flange 66 of the main frame 18. A combined intermittent and outside operating member 68 includes upper and lower apertured flanges 7t) and 72 which receive the pin 62 to pivotally and slidably mount the member 68 thereon. A compression spring 74 seats on flange 66 and flange 72 to normally locate the member 68 in a vertical position, as shown in FIGURE 2. The spring 74 has no function of locating the member 68 rotatably with respect to the pin 62.

A locking lever 76 is pivoted at 78 to the frame 18. An overcenter type torsion spring 80 is connected between the locking lever and the frame 18 to locate the locking lever in unlocked position, as shown in FIG- URES 2 and 5, or in locked position, not shown, wherein the member 76 is located clockwise of its position shown. One arm 82 of the locking lever is conventionally connected to an outside key cylinder assembly 84, FIGURE 1, and the other arm .of the locking lever is connected by a shiftable rod 86 with an inside garnish button 88, FIGURE 1. Either the key cylinder assembly or the garnish button can be used to shift the locking lever between its locked and unlocked positions. The locking lever is located in locked and unlocked positions by engagement of the sides of a notch 90 thereof with a lateral lanced tab 92 of the frame 18.

Lever 76 further includes a lateral flange or tab 94 which is received within a vertically elongated slot 96 formed in a lateral flange 98 of the member 68. The member 68 can be shifted vertically of the pin 62 without any movement of the locking lever due to the vertical elongation of the slot 96. When the operating lever 68 is moved downwardly by an operating rod 100 slidably journaled in flange 64, the engagement of a shoulder 102, FIGURE 3, of the member 68 with a flanged leg 104 of the detent 46 swings the detent counterclockwise of the pivot 48 and permits the spring 38 to move the bolt to unlatched position from either the intermediate or the latched position. The rod 100 is connected to a push button assembly 106 incorporated in an outside door handle 108 and a bellcrank lever or other type of transfer means may be used to transfer the horizontal reciprocal motion of the push button assembly to vertical reciprocal motion of the rod 100.

When the member 68 is in its position as shown, it is located in a coupled position or relationship to the detent 46 so that movement of the member 68 results in movement of the detent. In order to uncouple the member 68 and the detent and locate the shoulder 102 out of overlying relationship to the detent leg 104, the locking lever 76 is shifted clockwise to its locked position, as previously described. Engagement of the tab 94 with the left-hand edge of the slot 96 rotates the member 68 counterclock wise, as viewed in FIGURE 4, to thereby uncouple the member 68 from the detent. As previously mentioned,

the spring 74 has no function in rotatably locating the member 68 with respect to the pin 62. Thus the locking lever easily locates member 68 in its coupled and uncoupled positions.

A transfer lever 110 is pivoted at 112 to the auxiliary frame 28. One leg 114 of the member extends through a horizontally elongated slot 116 of the member 68, best shown in FIGURE 3, and the other leg of this lever overlies a bellcrank remote lever 118 which is pivoted at 120 to a side flange 122 of the auxiliary frame 28. A shiftable rod 124 connects the lever 118 to an inside remote handle 126, FIGURE 1. Upon movement of the remote handle and shifting movement of the rod 124, the lever 118 will swing clockwise, as viewed in FIGURE 3, to in turn swing the lever 110 counterclockwise of pivot 112, as viewed in FIGURES 2 and 5, to thereby shift the member 68 downwardly of the pin 62 and release the detent as previously described. The transfer lever 110 will always shift the member 68 whenever the remote handle is operated since the horizontal elongation of the slot 116 always couples the member 68 and the lever 110. However, when the lever 68 is in its uncoupled position, it will not actuate the detent when shifted downwardly, as previously described.

As best shown in FIGURE 2, the lower flange 72 of the member 68 includes a depending tab 128 while the detent arm 52 includes a lateral tab 130. Tabs 128 and 130 provide for automatic undoggin-g or, alternately, keyless locking.

When the bolt 24 is in unlatched position as shown in FIGURE 5 and the door 12 is thereafter closed, the bolt will rotate clockwise toward latched position. As the bolt rotates in this direction, the detent 46 will intermittently swing counterclockwise about the pivot 48. Normally, when the member 68 is in its coupled position as shown, there is sufficiently distance between the tab 130 and the tab 128 so that the detent can intermittently swing counterclockwise without any engagement between tabs 128 and 130. However, when the member 68 is moved to its uncoupled position and the bolt 24 is in unlatched position, the tab 128 moves to a position immediately adjacent the tab 130 such that when the detent first swings counterclockwise as arm 56 ratchets past the first shoulder 60 of the bolt, tab 130 engages tab 128 to swing member 68 clockwise as viewed in FIGURE 4 a suflicient distance such that spring 80 goes overcenter and the locking lever returns to its unlocked position as member 68 returns to its coupled position. Thus, automatic undogging is accomplished.

Should the member 68 be shifted downwardly by depression of the rod 108 and be held in this position as the door is closed, tab 130 will move above tab 128 so that the locking lever 76 remains in locked position and member 68 remains in its uncoupled position to thereby accomplish keyless locking.

The bolt 24 is engageable with a conventional headed striker pin 132 which is mounted on the body pillar. When the bolt is in latched position as shown in FIG- URE 2, the head of the striker pin is trapped between an extension flange 134 of frame 18 and a slidable wedge or shoe 136 mounted on the auxiliary frame 28 while the shank of the striker pin is located within the bolt throat. Likewise, the engagement of the outboard leg of the bolt with the striker pin as the door is closed rotates the bolt to either intermediate or latched position against the action of the spring 38.

Thus, this invention provides an improved closure latch.

I claim:

1. A vehicle body closure latch comprising, in combination, support means, latch means mounted on the support means for movement between latched and unlatched positions, detent means mounted on the support means for movement between holding and released positions with respect to the latch means, a shaft on the support means, an operating member slidably and rotatably mounted on the shaft, means on the operating member engageable with the detent means upon axial sliding movement of the operating member while in one coupled rotative position for moving the detent means to released position substantially veritcally movable means for actuating the operating member, a locking member mounted on the support means for movement between locked and unlocked positions about an axis transverse of the shaft axis, and cooperating means on the locking member and the operating member for locating the operating member in the one rotative position when the locking member is in unlocked position and for rotating the operating member to a second uncoupled rotative position with respect to the detent means when the locking member is in locked position, the means on the operating member being out of the path of the detent means when the operating member is in the uncoupled position thereof.

2. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein the cooperating means includes a slot in one member elongated in the direction of sliding movement of the operating member and an extension on the other member received within the slot and engageable with the elongated sides thereof to locate the operating member with respect to the locking member.

3. The combination recited in claim 1 including a release member mounted on the support means, and second cooperating means on the release member and operating member coupling the members in any rotative or axial position of the operating member.

4. The combination recited in claim 3 wherein the second cooperating means includes a slot in one member elongated transverse to the direction of sliding movement of the operating member and a portion on the other member received within the slot and engageable with the elongated sides thereof to move the members axially relative to each other.

5. The combination recited in claim 1 including resilient means surrounding the shaft and seating between the operating member and the support means to axially locate the operating member with respect to the shaft and freely permit rotational movement of the operating member about the shaft.

6. A vehicle body closure latch comprising in combination support means, a latch member mounted on the support means for movement between latched and unlatched positions, a detent member rotatably mounted on the support means and including a first arm engageable with the latch member to hold the latch member in latched position and a second arm extending generally opposite of the first arm, a shaft on the support means, an operating member slidably and rotatably mounted on the shaft, resilient means surrounding the shaft and seating between the operating member and the support means to axially locate the operating member with respect to the shaft and freely permit rotational movement of the operating member about the shaft, an abutment on the operating member engageable with the second arm of the detent upon axial movement of the operating member while in one rotative position for swinging the detent member in one direction to move the first arm thereof out of engagement with the latch member, a locking member rotatably mounted on the support means for movement between locked and unlocked positions, a slot in the operating member elongated in the direction of axial movement thereof, an extension on the locking member received within the slot and engageable with the opposite elongated sides thereof to locate the operating member in the first rotative position thereof or in a second uncoupled rotative position thereof wherein the abutment on the operating member is located out of the path of the second arm of the detent member, said slot and extension permitting axial movement of the operating member in either rotative position thereof, a third arm on the detent member, an extension on the operating member located in the path of movement of the third arm upon rotational movement of the detent member in a direction opposite the one direction when the operating member is in the second rotative position thereof, engagement of the third arm of the detent with the extension of the operating member moving the operating member from the second rotative position thereof to the first rotative position thereof and moving the locking member from locked position to unlocked position.

7. The combination recited in claim 6 including means for locating the extension of the operating member out of the path of movement of the third arm of the detent prior to movement of the detent member in the opposite rotative direction to maintain the operating member in the second rotative position thereof.

RICHARD E. MOORE, Primary Examiner. 

